Woman of my Dreams
by Zelenasgirl96
Summary: Emma has nightmares of Regina being abused by her husband and wakes up with the same injuries. Will Emma find her Soulmate in time to save her?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hey everybody! This is my first fanfiction. The inspiration came from a prompt I saw on Facebook. The prompt was "What if when your soulmate got hurt you also got hurt. If they got a bruise, then you also got a bruise." This is what came out of that. Trigger warning for scenes of emotional and physical violence. Thanks for reading and comments are greatly appreciated. xo ZG**

 **Disclaimer: All characters are the intellectual property of Adam and Eddy. I own nothing.**

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 **Chapter 1: The Nightmare**

It started almost the same as always, at first everything is fine. Emma sees the woman sitting in bed, reading "The Great Gatsby", the same book as last time. Then she hears the slamming of the door and can see the fear and alarm on the face of the brown headed woman as they both know what is coming next. " You Bitch, where are you?" she heard the man yell.

The woman quickly tried to pretend that she was asleep so that maybe he would leave her alone, but Emma knew that it was going to be too late. The door was roughly flung open not seconds later by a red faced, irate man.

"You thought you could get away with it this time? Didn't you?" He screamed, roughly grabbing the woman and throwing her out of the bed onto the floor.

"No!" I'm Sorry!" The woman sobbed.

"Damn right you are. I thought I taught you better the last few times you have tried to pull this stunt." He said pulling back his arm and Emma braced herself for what was coming next, harmless to stop it.

"Please! I won't do it again! I swear!" the woman begged and as the man's raised hand struck the side of the brunette woman's face, Emma sat straight up in bed, feeling on her face the same slap that she had just witnessed.

Emma had been having similar nightmares for almost two years, always waking up at the first slap, punch or punishment that the man inflicted upon the poor woman. She had tried everything to make the dreams stop... therapy, medication, meditation, nothing helped. She didn't even know what caused them. Her past in foster care may not have been the best but nothing happened like what the dream woman was having to endure. Emma wished that she could help the woman but they were just dreams, weren't they?

Again, Emma felt the stinging of a slap on her left cheek, and then was doubled over by a sharp pain in her ribs. "God," she thought. "I hope I don't have to go back to the ER." The last time she woke up and her ribs hurt this bad, they were broken. It was kind of hard to explain how her dreams and her injuries coincided to the doctor. They never seemed to believe her. Looking at the clock, it read 2:45 am and Emma knew she would not be getting anymore sleep. Slowly, she got up from the bed trying to ignore the ache in her ribs and headed to the bathroom across the hall. She loudly gasped as she turned on the light and got a glimpse if her own reflection. There were two large hand shaped bruises on her left cheek. Seeing those, she decided to check her ribs and when she lifted her shirt, sure enough there was huge briuses down her ribcage. After some careful poking and proding Emma decided that she didn't think they were broken but might want to get it checked out anyway. Leaving the bathroom, she knew she needed to call Ruby. Emma knew Ruby would still be at work since she worked the overnight shift at Granny's.

"Hello."

"Hey, Rubes. I'ts me." Emma said quietly.

"Did it happen again. Em?" Ruby responded"

"Yeah. I have some pretty nice bruised ribs and I look like I've been in a fight. My face is pretty bruised up too."

"Jesus, Emma! Isn't this like the second time in two weeks?" Ruby questioned

"Three weeks... but, yeah. I think it is getting worse." Emma replied sadly.

"I'm sorry Em. Do you need me to come over there? I can call someone in."

"No, I am okay right now but would you be willing to take me to see Dr. K when you get off?"

"Yeah, I get off at seven and I will be there."

"Thanks Ruby."

"Anytime. I have a customer, so I will see you in a couple of hours. Please take it easy until then okay?"

"Okay. Bye Ruby."

It was just after three when Emma got off the phone with Ruby and was not sure what she was going to do for a few hours. Looking around the apartment, Emma knew she would not be sleeping or working out so she scratched those two off the list along with watching television because at that time of the morning the only thing on was infomercials. Which only left Facebook or playing online video games. She decided on facebook, because they video games after a while just make her tired. She scrolled through her feed for a little while when a thought popped in her head. She wondered if anyone else had ever been through what she was experiencing. She popped over to google trying to come up with the right combination of words to find what she was looking for. "Dreaming turned violent" Nope, not what she was looking for. "Harmful Dreams." Not that either. She finally decided to get creative. "Waking up with injuries after having a nightmare."  
Now things started to look up, she was getting somewhere. The first link was about how it was possible to accidently injure youself while asleep but Emma already knew that was possible. The second link was an article written by a psychologist who believed that seeing yourself being injured in a dream can trick your mind or body to believe that you really are injured. It was pretty close to what was happening, however it wasn't her in the dreams being hurt. It was the beautiful, brunette woman with dark chocolate eyes. So Emma kept looking and many pages later Emma came across something that seemed so insane that she just had to check it out. The page was about how some people are physically able to feel through dreams, mood swings and other ailments, the same feelings as their soulmate.

"Soulmate?" Emma said aloud.

She didn't think that they actually existed. So she went reading some of the comments left on the page from people who claimed that this had happened to them. "Weird dreams, not invovling myself...", "Strange bruises and scratches...", "Random sickness and mood swings..." Emma was shocked that the things these people had claimed were currently happing to her. "Oh, great. I'm going crazy." It couldn't actually be real, if it was real then why do people not know about it.

Emma was startled out of her thoughts by a knock on her door. Who was at her door? She glanced at the clock. Shit! It was already half past seven. She went over and unlocked the door, stepping back to let Ruby in.

"Sorry Rube. I didn't realize what time it was or the door would have been unlocked." Emma said distractedly, looking back at her laptop.

"It's okay." Ruby responded looking at Emma. "Are you okay? You look really confused and worried, plus those bruises look really painful."

Emma had not been thinking about the bruises until Ruby mentioned them but she was right they were quite sore and she was pretty sure they were pretty swollen. "They aren't too bad but come here and look at this! At first it was a load of crap but it makes a little sense."

Ruby studied the page for a few minutes and then turned to Emma slightly frowning. Emma took notice of the look on her friends face but wasn't sure what to make of it.

"It's just a buch of crazy people, right?" Emma finally asked.

"I don't think they are crazy at all. I think you need to talk to Granny. I heard her mention something like this once, but I never thought anything else about it. I thought it was just a story." Ruby said quietly.

"Granny?" Emma questioned skeptically.

"Yeah, if she knows something, I know she would tell you."

"Well, I guess I could go by there after we get done visiting your girlfriend." Emma commented knowing it would get a response from Ruby.

"She is not my girlfriend!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Sure, Rubes... You have only had a crush on Dr. K for like as long as I've known you."

"No I haven't." The blush on her cheeks giving her away. "Come on, let's get there before they get to busy."

"Alright, just try not to get caught staring at her butt again."

"Oh my God, it was one time!" Ruby's blush only deepend.

Emma felt her ribs protest as she chuckled at her exasperated friend.

" Okay," Emma said while Ruby was helping her down the stairs of her apartment building. " I promise not to embarrass you while we are there."

"Gee, thanks." She responded sarcastically.

They fell into a silence which sent Emma thinking once again. About half way to the Clinic a new thought entered Emma's head.

"Hey, what if all that Soulmate stuff is real? How do I even find her? I don't know her name or even where she lives." Emma paused and her voice dropped to a whisper and grew saddened. " How am I supposed to help her?

"I don't know, but if it is real and she is real then I will help you find her. I promise." Ruby said honestly.

"Thank you, Ruby."

Ruby nodded. "But for know we need to go in here and hopefully not watch me make an idiot of myself again.

Emma laughed and slowly exited the car.

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 **Thanks for reading so far. Sorry this chapter is kind of long. Hope you guys liked it. Second chapter should be up in the next few days. xo ZG**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, everyone. Sorry it took me a little longer than I said to get this up, work is a killer. But without further ado, I give you Chapter 2. Enjoy, ZG**

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Chapter 2: Doctor K

"Well, Emma, you are very lucky, your ribs are not broken but they are very badly bruised." Said Doctor K, looking at the X-Rays. "I thought I told you last time that you need to take it easy at work." Everyone knew that Emma who worked as a bail-bonds woman on many occasions would come out of a bad confrontation at work with black eyes, bruises, and knots on various parts of her body.

"I'm telling you Doc, it's not work." Emma replied. " You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"If you say so, Emma. However, I am going to recommend that you be on desk duty for a couple of weeks, just so you don't damage your ribs any worse than they already are."

Emma groaned loudly. "I hate desk jobs, Doc. Anything but that."

"I'm sorry, but it is for the best." The doctor stopped and looked back at the X-Rays thoughtfully. "Alright, how about this... Come back in on Friday and we will check and see how they are healing and maybe, just maybe I will lift your restrictions."

Emma thought about it and Friday was only four days away. She guessed she could handle four days of boring paperwork. "Fine." she grumbled.

"Alright you are good to go." She turned to walk out and then quickly turned back to face Emma once again. "Oh, do you still remember how to wrap them properly?"

"Yeah, Doc. I still remember." she said. Wrapping up her ribs properly was Emma's least favorite thing to do. It was a two person job to get the wrap snug enough to ensure stability without cutting off your air supply and feeling like your turning to stone.

"If your ribs start hurting too badly then try wrapping them and taking a couple ibuprofen, it should help with the pain."

"Ok, Thanks."

"Thanks Doc." Ruby also said as the young doctor turned her way.

"Your Welcome." She responded with a smile and as she went to leave she leaned in to whisper something quietly to Ruby. Emma was not sure what was said but Ruby blushed the deepest shade of red that Emma had ever seen. True to her word, however, she waited until they were situated back in the car to ask Ruby what had just happened.

"What was that all about?" Emma questioned smugly, already knowing pretty well what may have just happened.

"Nothing..." Ruby replied, still blushing.

"It didn't look like nothing to me, Rubes."

"She was just telling me something."

"Uh-huh." Emma prodded.

" Ok," then Ruby spoke really quickly and slightly mumbling. "shesaidthatifIwasgoingtostareatherassthatishouldatleastcallherbyherfirstname."

"What was that Ruby?"

"God, Em. Don't make me repeat it."

"Well then you shouldn't have mumbled." Emma replied.

Ruby sighed. "She said that if I was going to stare at her ass then I should at least call her by her first name."

As bad as her ribs ached, Emma could not contain her laughter. "I cannot believe she caught you staring again." Emma said between chuckles.

"Shut up!" Ruby half growled.

"I'm sorry Ruby. I didn't mean to make you mad. What is her first name anyway?" Emma asked

"Dorothy."

"Wait, Dorothy? So her name is Dorothy Kansas? Like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz who is from Kansas?"

"Yeah, you see why she goes by Doctor K?" Ruby responded.

"Definitely. I bet she got picked on in school a lot."

"She did." Ruby said almost sadly.

Emma had forgotten that Ruby said that she went to school with the Doctor. "I forgot, Ruby that you went to school with her."

"She was a couple of years ahead of me, but yeah, some of the kids used to be pretty mean to her. Call her names, threaten to beat her up, they even one time tried to shove her in a supply closet and lock her in there. We never could understand why her aunt never made a scene about any of it. But, I mean she really stuck it to everybody by becoming a good doctor."

Emma had learned a few years ago, after drinking one night that Ruby had a serious crush on the doctor but had never really pressed the subject because it seemed to either make Ruby annoyed or sad. "In all seriousness, how long have you had a crush on her, Ruby?"

"Since I was 15." Ruby responded sadly.

"Thirteen years, Ruby?! You have had a crush on her for thirteen years?" Emma was baffled.

"Yeah, sounds kind of dumb doesn't it?" Ruby said, embarrassed.

"No, it doesn't. Have you ever asked her out?"

Ruby hung her head. "No, she was a senior when I met her and I used to hang out with some of her friends and would run into her briefly during the summer when she was home from school. After she finally came back here for good and started her clinic, I thought about it, but I have seen some of the women that she dates. They are like blonde, successful models, or something like that. I doubt she will want to go out with the woman who still has a childish crush on her and still works at her Grandmother's diner." When Ruby ended, she looked like she was about to cry.

Emma had never known that Ruby had felt this way. If she had, she would have not teased Ruby so much about the beautiful, brunette doctor." I think she does like you, Ruby. She was practically flirting with you. I think that you should ask her out. She might surprise you." Emma encouraged.

"Maybe you're right." Ruby said, smiling slightly. "But first we need to figure out what is going on with you straightened out. After that I promise to consider asking her out."

"Okay, that's a deal. On to Granny's, then?" Emma questioned

"On to Granny's!" exclaimed Ruby.

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 **End of Chapter 2. Just a small note: This story will not have very graphic violence scenes. Just the physical sensations that Emma feels after the dreams. Thanks for reading. ZG**


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